Posted by: velocipedestrian
Took my hardtail out for a mini bikepacking trip. [...]
Looks and sounds like a nice little trip, thanks for the report & photos!
NSMB - 2022 - Hardtail Thread...
Posted by: fartymarty
Velo - where was your bike packing trip?
First night at Kaitoki regional park, second at the summit of the Rimutaka rail trail.
Pretty sure my 5 year old will be able to pedal the Hutt side of the rail trail, and I'll be chasing the 7 year old.
Sweet. My Grandparents used to live up the Hutt Valley although I was too young to remember visiting.
Every time I see pictures or videos of New Zealand, without knowing it's New Zealand, I think to myself "this looks a bit like a cool area of BC I haven't been to before...."
I should really get down there. :)
Nice pictures, looks beautiful.
Posted by: BC_Nuggets
Every time I see pictures or videos of New Zealand, without knowing it's New Zealand, I think to myself "this looks a bit like a cool area of BC I haven't been to before...."
I should really get down there. :)
Nice pictures, looks beautiful.
There's a reason reddit came up with New Zanada. It's a bit far, better make it a big one if you're coming down eh.
Posted by: BC_Nuggets
Rant:
My technical climbing is absolutely garbage this past year. I'm spinning out, wheelie-ing out, chickening out, crashing out in attempts to do stuff I could previously climb. I don't think much has changed on my bike. I'm back on a longer stem which has helped but I don't know what the hell else is going on. Maybe having an ikon 2.35 on the back isn't the best idea. And maybe it's the dry and dusty conditions? My bar is a little higher now but it won't go lower and overall it's super comfortable. It's definitely a combination of psychology and perhaps my core and upper body strength has declined. I know hardtails are a bit harder to climb on the more technical, slippery stuff than FS but the stuff I'm having problems with isn't THAT bad. Perhaps I'm choosing too easy of a gear, not coming in with enough momentum, not being explosive when required. I don't know...it's just sad.
Guess I just need to keep working on it. It's one thing to be stuck and not improving but in this particular area I have gotten worse and I can't put a finger on why besides it's likely a combination of several factors.
Thanks for listening. Ah...feels a little better now.
That sucks, I think everyone can relate to how you are feeling.
The back tire is probably a large contributor.
If I'm mostly spinning out, I drop one or two gears harder. Helps me approach with more speed and if the tire starts to slip you will have a better chance of regaining traction.
Let us know if you can turn it around before the rain comes and we are all spinning out on everything.
Posted by: RAHrider
Posted by: BC_Nuggets
Rant:
Perhaps I'm choosing too easy of a gear, not coming in with enough momentum, not being explosive when required. I don't know...it's just sad.
The back tire is probably a large contributor.
If I'm mostly spinning out, I drop one or two gears harder. Helps me approach with more speed and if the tire starts to slip you will have a better chance of regaining traction.
Speed is your friend. Go a gear of two harder.
Posted by: fartymarty
Posted by: RAHrider
Posted by: BC_Nuggets
Rant:
Perhaps I'm choosing too easy of a gear, not coming in with enough momentum, not being explosive when required. I don't know...it's just sad.
The back tire is probably a large contributor.
If I'm mostly spinning out, I drop one or two gears harder. Helps me approach with more speed and if the tire starts to slip you will have a better chance of regaining traction.
Speed is your friend. Go a gear of two harder.
Momentum and push-ups fix most bike issues.
Posted by: BC_Nuggets
Rant:
My technical climbing is absolutely garbage this past year.
I've had some wheel slipping issues while climbing on a couple hardtails I've owned the last while so I can offer some thoughts. The tire is slipping because it doesn't have enough traction. A few ways to mitigate that are:
- Get more weight on the rear tire. [saddle backwards, raise bars, taller fork, shorter CS if you have sliders]
- Lower air pressure [if possible]
- Different tire [bigger knobs, softer compound, more volume so you can run at a lower pressure]
- Try a harder gear like RAH mentioned [oval chainring could help]
Momentum is always a great cheat code if the climb is short enough so use it if you can. If the climb is longer and steady sometimes it's better to come in and push through at a constant effort you can sustain all the way to the top.
I'd find a shorter climb that is causing you some issues and session it. Try whatever you can to see how it affects your climbing so you can start to identify likely solutions. If you have climbed these sorts of sections fine in the past you know you can do it so it's worth working on a bit. You'll feel good once you've made some progress. If you can use your phone to grab some video. You can self-coach your riding if you can see what's happening from an external perspective.
I just sent my fork away for service. It'll come back with 20mm more travel not because I want more squish, but because that's a simple way to move some weight onto the rear wheel and improve rear wheel traction for steep loose climbs where I am getting some wheel spin. Although my problem is minor and only happens in some very specific circumstances I get super annoyed blowing a climb that I know I can get up cleanly. Once the fork is back [I'll also put on a fresh rear tire] I'll be going to a local trail system that has a 4-5 of these climbs and I'll do a solo ride so I can session them and get the problem solved.
You mentioned wheel spin [not enough rear wheel traction] and looping out [not enough weight on the front wheel] which are competing problems. I'd work on one at a time so do enough tweaks so you don't get any wheel spin then do the same to keep the front wheel down. You might have to go back and forth a few times. To find an optimal setup for both.
Last edited by: Vikb on Oct. 20, 2022, 6:59 a.m., edited 1 time in total.
... alternative other possibility: it's just a hard climb/hard spots where you're stuck.
I finally cleaned one climb-section I have been working on all summer. Tried different tires, different bikes, alternative lines, various conditions - kept getting denied. Just took some more practice. Wasn't me or the bike. Take it easy on yourself!
Posted by: mrbrett
... alternative other possibility: it's just a hard climb/hard spots where you're stuck.
I finally cleaned one climb-section I have been working on all summer. Tried different tires, different bikes, alternative lines, various conditions - kept getting denied. Just took some more practice. Wasn't me or the bike. Take it easy on yourself!
Ditto. I have a short local climb that I have got 3 out of 10 times in one session a few years back and haven't managed it since. It's steep and rocky with 2-3 step ups and you've got to hit it fast and change down as you go up it. It's just hard.
I get annoyed when I don't clean a climb that I have done in the past regularly. Because I know I can do it and it's just a matter of bike setup/technique that's holding me back. So I want to solve that.
I don't get annoyed when I just can't clean a climb that I never have made or rarely have cleaned. I might session it so I can figure it out and add it to my repertoire. That's always a great feeling. OTOH some climbs are so far out of my league there is no point bothering and I just break out my HAB skills.
BC Nuggets has noticed a negative change in what he can get up so I'd spend the time to figure out what's going on and get that performance back.
Posted by: mrbrett
... alternative other possibility: it's just a hard climb/hard spots where you're stuck.
I finally cleaned one climb-section I have been working on all summer. Tried different tires, different bikes, alternative lines, various conditions - kept getting denied. Just took some more practice. Wasn't me or the bike. Take it easy on yourself!
Nah, this is stuff I've traditionally been able to get up at least 50% of the time. Could be my age too. Who knows, I'll keep at it. Been riding a bit less this summer than previous years so I'm a bit rusty but still it's a bummer.
Posted by: Vikb
I get annoyed when I don't clean a climb that I have done in the past regularly. Because I know I can do it and it's just a matter of bike setup/technique that's holding me back. So I want to solve that.
I don't get annoyed when I just can't clean a climb that I never have made or rarely have cleaned. I might session it so I can figure it out and add it to my repertoire. That's always a great feeling. OTOH some climbs are so far out of my league there is no point bothering and I just break out my HAB skills.
BC Nuggets has noticed a negative change in what he can get up so I'd spend the time to figure out what's going on and get that performance back.
Yep that's it. Going to put my DHR2 back on. Oh and the obvious thing which just occurred to me is I'm about 10lbs heavier than previous years and I don't think that's muscle. And I'm getting older too but some of you guys are older than I am (50) so who knows.
So:
Ride more
Eat better
Rear tire change
Psychologically - don't give up easy
Session/repeat the ones I should be getting
Heart rate monitor?
Core and leg strength go a long way on technical climbs. Easier to manhandle the bike through and up stuff, easier to push a harder gear, easier to keep balance.
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